Irish author James Joyce supposedly said that Catholic means, “Here comes everybody!” Regardless of the historical accuracy of that statement, it is, nevertheless, true. The word itself catholic means universal, and so the Catholic Church includes men and women of every race, color and ethnic background. It embraces human beings of every language, educational level and socio-economic status. It is no wonder then that the myriads of saints in heaven should reflect that diversity.
There are probably billions of saints in heaven. The first reading from the Book of Revelation for the solemnity of All Saints attests to the fact that the number is indeed enormous and indefinite. Speaking of those who stand before the throne of God in heaven, the seer Saint John says they comprise “a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue.” (7:9) They are also described as bearing a seal on their forehead, which designated them as servants of God, and they numbered “one hundred and forty-four thousand marked from every tribe of the Israelites.” (7:4) In other words, the 12 tribes of ancient Israel multiplied by 12 signifies a huge, countless number of holy ones.
The homilies preached at the Mass of All Saints are frequently interspersed with brief biographical sketches of some of the saints who are proposed for the admiration and imitation of the faithful. Many preachers are likely to include favorites such as Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and Saint Mother Teresa. As they are extolled for their embrace of Christ-like poverty, their patience in sickness and adversity, their careful, loving attention to the most menial of tasks, and their dogged determination through years and years of spiritual dryness, we can only sigh and say, “Where does that leave me? How can I ever hope to compete with such giants?”
The good news is we don’t have to compete with them; nor does the Lord expect us to or even want us to. All we need to do is fulfill the duties of our station in life, whatever it may be, to the best of our ability.
In the meantime, as we ponder what we perceive to be our own gross inadequacy to be numbered among the greats, let us consider the lives of two who became saints in spite of themselves.
Saint Noël Chabanel was one of the eight North America martyrs of the 17th century. They were all Jesuits from France who ministered to the Native Americans in what is now New York and Ontario. Noel was undoubtedly the biggest misfit among them. A highly educated man and brilliant professor, he, nevertheless, longed to serve as a missionary in New France.
Once his request was granted and he began his work in North America, he realized he had made a terrible mistake. He found the customs of the people repulsive and their diet disgusting. He labored to learn their language, but with no success. He fell into a deep depression and experienced severe homesickness.
However, Noël vowed to remain in North America for life and do the best he could, even though his superiors had given him permission to return to France. While crossing a river, he was tomahawked by an apostate Huron, who said he hated the faith. He was the last of the eight to suffer martyrdom.
Another, a contemporary of Saint Noël who lived halfway around the world, was Saint Lorenzo Ruiz. A native of the Philippines, he was a married man and the father of three children. He served as a sacristan in his parish church and was an active member of the Confraternity of the Holy Rosary.
At one point, Lorenzo was accused of involvement in a criminal case, the details of which remain unknown. However, he was so afraid of an unfavorable judgment against him that he decided to flee the country. He set sail with a Dominican friar and his companions who were going to evangelize in Japan. By that time, Christian missionary activity had been outlawed in Japan and Japanese Christians had gone into hiding.
Sometime after their arrival, Lorenzo and the missionaries were taken prisoner and sent to Nagasaki. There, they stood trial. At first, Lorenzo boldly proclaimed that he was a Christian and would gladly give up his life a thousand times rather than renounce his faith. Soon he lost courage, though, and inquired if his life would be spared if he renounced the faith. However, before he received an answer, he changed his mind once again and recanted, claiming that he had spoken too quickly out of ignorance. He proudly renewed his profession of faith. Then he was condemned to a cruel death by slow burning over a pit, just like his third-century namesake, the deacon Saint Lawrence, and was finally beheaded.
Saint Noël Chabanel experienced great disappointment and discouragement on his road to sanctity. Saint Lorenzo Ruiz was terribly fickle and was hurled headlong into heaven simply because he got on the wrong boat! See yourself, warts and all, stumbling along a similar path by the grace, the love and the mercy of God. After all, it is God’s will that we should all be great saints. So this All Saints’ Day, remember, “Here comes everybody!”
Father Edward Kolla is a retired priest of the Diocese.
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